


Love Overcomes

by Daegaer



Category: Christian Bible (New Testament), Fix Bay'nets - George Manville Fenn
Genre: 1st Century CE, AU, Hellenistic culture, Legionaries - Freeform, M/M, Roman Empire, Saul of Tarsus
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2005-04-10
Updated: 2005-04-10
Packaged: 2018-11-21 11:51:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 832
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11356932
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Daegaer/pseuds/Daegaer
Summary: Saul of Tarsus is horrified to find a Roman officer and legionary listening in on troublemakers.





	Love Overcomes

Being a young man of orthodox beliefs and conservative views, Saul found himself both personally and politically deeply offended by the views of a small group of people that might, as he considered, be seen quite clearly to be heretical. He found it beyond belief that such people could spread from Jerusalem throughout the country, bringing with them their peculiar ideas on the fulfilment of prophecy and the nature of Divine Providence. That their ideas moreover could be seen, as it were, dovetailing - although Saul attempted to avoid metaphors of a carpentry nature when talking with such people - with some views on the coming end of times, he found distressing. What would the Romans do if they became aware of such views, he wondered. Accordingly, he was gravely worried to see, at a meeting of a group on whom he had been compiling reports, two legionaries standing near-by, listening intently. 

"Oh," thought Saul, "how I hope that their Aramaic is as poor as the speaker's Greek! Surely they will go back to their officers with word of sedition." He came closer to the soldiers, and saw with annoyance that the taller of the two carried the staff that indicated he was a centurion. "Ah!" ejaculated Saul, angered to find a Roman gentleman, with the authority to carry his words higher and know they would be heeded, at such a meeting.

"Your pardon," said the centurion, stepping back. "Did you wish to pass?"

"No, thank you," said Saul in annoyance. The speaker expounded further on the topic of equality in these, the end-times, and Saul groaned.

"Are you well?" asked the centurion.

"Quite well, thank you," said Saul shortly.

"Your Greek is very good," said the centurion, in a quality of Greek clearly learned as a reluctant schoolboy from books and over-educated tutors rather than as a language spoken naturally and easily from an early age as had been the case with Saul.

"Thank you," said Saul dryly. "Do you, perchance, speak Aramaic?"

"Alas," said the centurion, "although I can buy from local merchants and speak simply to labourers, I must confess that it is a great relief that so many people speak Greek. I am lucky in that regard - how my poor men long to hear Latin spoken about them!" He smiled fondly at the legionary beside him, who smiled shyly in return.

"I c'n manage Greek all right, sir," he said in an accent so thick Saul found it difficult to comprehend his meaning, "long as the folk here speak slow an' don't mind me askin' them to say things again." Saul breathed far more easily, and looked contemptuously at the legionary, deciding he had been a fool to worry about such men understanding what they heard. The young legionary blinked at his expression and then smiled cheerfully. "'Course," he said in equally barbarous Aramaic, "if I got ter learn a new lingo, it's as well ter be one the folk I c'n afford to buy from speak, as well as what you gentlemen use, doncher think?" He grinned at Saul's ejaculation of dismay and said something in Latin to his officer, who smiled ruefully down at him.

"He is teasing you," said the centurion. "Many people think the plebian troops stupid, although I am sure you do not."

"Not at all," said Saul unhappily, wishing every legionary at the bottom of the sea.

"That name the man keeps saying," said the centurion. "Is that not the name of a seditionist executed some years ago?"

"These are country people," said Saul quickly. "They are unlettered and have little sense--"

"Same as us legionaries, then?" said the legionary impishly.

"Come now," said the centurion reprovingly, "do not worry this gentleman. Sir," he continued, "is my man right to say these people consider all persons equal no matter their station in life? And that the man executed for sedition is somehow alive once more?"

"Most of them mean no harm," said Saul miserably. "They just need to be shown the error of their ways, to have the few trouble-makers punished, and this nonsense will stop." He glared at the speaker, and thought he would find a way to stop all those spreading such views.

"We mean no harm either," said the centurion quietly. "We just want to listen - these ideas that love overcomes rank, overcomes even death, they're interesting." He looked at Saul in some hope. "Sir," he said, "could you not translate more accurately for us? We want to understand."

"I hope I'm struck blind before I start spreading such views as these people hold," snapped Saul, and turned and strode away, pushing past those hanging on the speaker's every word. Looking back, he saw the Romans still listening intently, with great concentration. Something had to be done, he thought, and soon. He knew some right-minded and brawny fellows. Perhaps frightening these heretics would succeed where discourse had not. Nodding decisively, he walked away, pleased to have thought of such a thing.


End file.
